Joel Embiid’s latest MVP-caliber outing, Davis Bertans’ continued struggles, and Danny Green’s sharpshooting | Sixers vs. Wizards best/worst
The Sixers scorched the nets in the third quarter, shooting 68.2%. Embiid (5-for-5) and Tobias Harris (4-for-4) combined to go 9-for-9.
WASHINGTON — The 76ers looked unstoppable in front of a neutral crowd.
On a night when the Sixers took a 132-103 Game 3 victory over the Washington Wizards, the biggest question was how many Philly fans were actually in the Capital One Arena. Yes, they were that loud and visible cheering on the Sixers like Saturday’s Game 3 was at the Wells Fargo Center.
They even had several “MVP” chants for Joel Embiid while Wizards fans tried to drown them out with boos.
But in didn’t matter, as both the chants and boos equally inspired the big man.
Here’s a look at some of the Best and Worst awards for Game 3.
Best performance
Embiid gets this. The MVP finalist had a playoff-career-high 36 points on 14-for-18 shooting to go with eight rebounds, a game-high three steals and one block in just 27 minutes, 54 seconds of action. Embiid, who made 3 of 4 three-pointers, sat out the fourth quarter. Twenty-five of his points came in the first half.
Worst performance
Davis Bertans gets this for the second consecutive. The Wizards inserted the 6-foot-10 forward into starting lineup to make up for their height disadvantage and provide three-point sharpshooting versus the Sixers. Well, his presence didn’t make much of a difference. He had his secondstraight poor-shooting outting, scoring eight points on 2-for-6 shooting, including missing four of five three-pointers. He also was a game-worst minus-34.. This comes after Bertans went 0-for-4 from the field, all three-pointers, to finish with zero points in Game 2.
» READ MORE: Are towering Sixers simply just too big for Washington Wizards?
Best defensive performance
This goes to Embiid. Three steals and one block is nothing to sneeze at, especially in three quarters of action.
Best statistic
This goes to the Sixers shooting 68.2% in the third quarter. Embiid (5-for-5) and Tobias Harris (4-for-4) combined to go 9-for-9 during that quarter.
Best individual statistic
This goes to Danny Green making 5 of 9 shots, all three-point attempts. The Sixers small forward finished with 15 points in 25 minutes, 45 seconds. He sat out the fourth quarter.
Worst statistic
This goes to the Raul Neto shooting 1-for-12. The 6-1 Wizards guard, who was taken out of the starting lineup, was 0-for-5 shooting through three quarters. Yes, it was a rough night for the former Sixer.
» READ MORE: Joel Embiid’s dunk on Rui Hachimura told the tale. The Sixers need to end the Wizards in Game 4 | David Murphy
Best of the best
This goes to the Sixers taking a three-games-to-none lead in the best-of-seven series. No NBA team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series.